Have you bought a motorcycle that has been rated as top-notch by various magazines, media, and videos, but it feels so ordinary after riding it yourself? You may have heard someone say about the importance and various benefits of adjusting the suspension of a motorcycle, but you can’t help but ask: “How to adjust the suspension of a motorcycle? It sounds so difficult, can I do such a complicated thing by myself?”

First, let’s talk about the benefits of adjusting the motorcycle’s suspension:
On our motorcycles, there are two suspension components: one on the front wheel, usually called the front fork; the other on the rear wheel, usually called the rear suspension. Like a car, suspension has two most important functions that we know: everyone knows that rugged terrain brings vibration to the car body, and suspension makes the ride more comfortable; at the same time, it keeps the tires in contact with the ground and ensures that the tires are powered to the ground. Output. But unlike a car, the suspension of a motorcycle will also greatly affect the handling and turning stability of the motorcycle. Of course, the setting of the car's suspension will also affect the steering, but as long as it is comfortable enough, we usually don't ask for too many family cars.

Suspension is generally composed of two parts: spring and damper

The spring is the main part of the suspension. This spring is like the spring we usually use in a ballpoint pen, but it is much stronger. The spring absorbs the impact of the ground through the elastic member and ensures the contact between the tire and the ground; the damper is a device used to control the tightness and resilience of the spring. The damper is like a pump full of oil. The speed at which the air pump moves up and down depends on the size of the through hole and the viscosity of the oil. All cars have springs and dampers. The springs are hidden on the front forks, while the rear shock absorbers are exposed to the outside. The suspension on the front and rear wheels works separately, and can respond separately according to the road surface and riding style.

Preparations for adjusting the suspension:
Find the original user manual. This booklet includes:
1. What can you adjust;

2. Adjust where the screws and knobs of the front and rear suspension are in the car;

3. Suspension settings recommended by the manufacturer (if you are using a modified suspension such as Ohlins, you need to contact the manufacturer to obtain the data of the recommended suspension settings) These very useful information.

According to different models, we can usually adjust all or several of the following aspects:

1. Preload: spring tension based on weight

2. Damping: the speed at which the spring shrinks and rebounds back to its original state

3. Compression ratio (Compression): a deeper level of damping control, mainly controlling the speed of spring contraction

4. Rebound ratio (Rebound): a deeper level of damping control, which mainly controls the speed at which the spring returns to normal from the compressed state

After you understand which parts of the suspension can be adjusted and how to adjust, you need to take out a piece of paper and write down the current settings to prevent the adjustment from breaking, and there are ways to restore the original settings. Generally speaking, for economic benefits, manufacturers will try their best to control cars. Therefore, the original suspension setup is generally not very bad. Compare the current settings of the car with the original settings. Before trying to adjust and set up your own suspension, you need to make sure they can be restored to factory settings or their previous settings when they mess up.